The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for releasing and separating cut tobacco from double cut cigarettes, filter-tip cigarettes, mouthpiece-tip cigarettes, or uncutting cigarettes, particularly such cigarettes, as rejected in the inspecting process, cigarettes produced while the machine being adjusted and uncutting cigarettes produced at one stage of the manufacturing process, etc. (hereinafter, these cigarettes will be referred to simply as cigarettes).
In general, it is an extremely important subject to release and separate cut tobacco from such cigarettes in order to recover the cut tobacco for reuse purposes in view of an effective use of expensive raw material of tobacco.
Heretofore, conventional apparatus serving for the above purpose are known as disclosed in the specifications of Japanese patent publication Nos. 43(1968)-23982 and 46(1971)-5040.
That is, the apparatus disclosed in the former publication is of the type wherein cigarettes irregularly fed are arranged in the vertical direction. After transferring the cigarettes through a wet belt conveyor for wetting a part thereof, the cigarettes are pressurized to break the wet portion. Then, the cut tobacco is separated from others by using vibrating screen. Likewise, the apparatus disclosed in the latter publication is of the type wherein a plurality of fixed fans are arranged within a vertical cylindrical barrel, and a plurality of rotary fans are mounted on a rotary shaft disposed in the central portion in an alternative manner with respect to said fixed fans. While the cigarette drops through the fixed fans as well as the rotary fans, the cut tobacco is separated from the other parts of cigarettes.
However, although these apparatus are suitable for separating the cut tobacco from cigarettes which are already cut as short as to about 10 cm or so, when the cut tobacco is to be separated from such long cigarettes as having a length of about 1 m generally called as a "rod roll" which tends to refuse to pass through the cutting portion of a winding machine, or from double length cigarettes having filter means at the central portion thereof, the recovering efficiency proves to be extremely poor. Moreover, it is difficult for the former publication apparatus to treat a large amount of cigarettes. In addition, the recovered cut tobacco is changeable in quality due to wet, and the separation efficiency of the cut tobacco is decreased since the roll paper and filter are broken into cotton shape. Similarly, in the case of the apparatus disclosed in the latter publication, the apparatus becomes large in size and the separation performance is not necessarily satisfactory.
The present invention is accomplished in view of the above disadvantages.